MONTEGO BAY, St James — More than a decade after the start of construction, the Montego Bay Sports Complex was yesterday officially opened during the second staging of the Western Primary School Invitational track meet.

Representatives of both the Jamaican and Venezuelan governments, as well as representatives of the Urban Development Corporation, led by chairman Wayne Chen, were on hand for the short ceremony.

Major Donovan Lewis, deputy general manger of the UDC who spoke on behalf of his organisation, said while everyone “agree that sports is a critical component of both the social and economic development of our nation’s people, many of our sportsmen and women have made us proud with world-beating and record-braking performances over the years… but we are, however, cognisant of the fact that raw talent, in and of itself, is not enough and that as a nation, we must provide the necessary infrastructure to achieve the desired results”.

He added that despite the opening yesterday, the venue was still being worked on and therefore its use would be limited for the time being.

The venue has so far cost nearly US$15million, most of which came from a loan from a Venezuelan bank, which has seen the construction of seating for just over 7,000, a football field and a 400m Mondo track, as well as amenities such as changing rooms etc.

Dr Horace Chang, Minister of Water and Housing, who represented the government, said the opening of the stadium “was long in coming and added a very important sports infrastructure to Montego Bay and western Jamaica”.

Meanwhile, former national representative Ray Harvey, who is the meet director for the Western Relays, was honoured by the organisers of the Western Primary Invitational and was presented with a wooden carving.